My Granny, who's more near & dear to me than just about anyone, is in the hospital. She has some gallstones, a blood clot they're trying to thin...just some overall miserable kind of stuff going on. The treatments/procedures seem pretty straight-forward, but it all means about a week's worth of time in the hospital. She's my Pappaw's primary caregiver from the time he puts his feet on the floor in the morning till she finally gets him tucked into bed at night - she is his lifeline in every way. Her being in the hospital is quite the "hiccup" in this arduous routine...
Thankfully my parents are next door & Johnny Boy's been able to look after Big John while my Granny's in the hospital (w.the help of some cooking from my Mama, of course). At any rate, my mom was on the porch w.my Pappaw Sunday night (Granny went to the hospital that morning) when he looks over at her & says, "That girl went to the hospital...she hasn't got back yet." My mom confirmed this, him going on to say "I want to go see if that girl's alright." He then pauses, thinks for a second and asks "How far is that hospital from here," to which I think she replied something like, "Not too far." She said he then got up out of his chair, walked out to the carport, set his walker aside and told her (pointing at my Dad's truck), "I'm gonna get in that and go see that girl." So off to see "that girl" they went...
Once at the hospital and in her room, they 'parked' the wheelchair parallel to my Granny's bed - her eyes welled up w.tears and my mom said, "there were some sweet smiling moments". She could sense that my Granny felt reassured that he was ok by him being there. After visiting for a while, my Pappaw stated that he was ready to go, and she told him to give her a kiss - she raised up in the bed & he leaned over in his chair & planted one on her...
In an email to my mom, I wrote about the above story...
"...cried re-telling it to Seth last night...one of the sweetest things I've ever heard about 2 of the turdiest, hard-headed people I've ever known. God love them :)"
There's never been anything cuddly or sweet about my Granny & Pappaw - spitfire, hard-headed, pistols - those are more the kind of words that come to mind when I think of them. At this point though, my Pappaw is a shadow of the man he was - both mentally & physically. My Granny is also "shrinking" it seems, in stature & spirit. They're getting old & I know they're getting tired...she tells me as much every time I see her. Don't get me wrong, though - she's still sharp as a whip and can tell you to kiss her a$% with the best of them. But I know taking care of him is taking its toll on her...
However, what makes this story sweet is that 4 children, a lifetime of experiences, good times, bad times, sickness & health - all that living & they're still taking care of each other. My granny's by far the more physically able - but my Pappaw's anxiousness to get to "that girl"...they're forever linked in this life, both still needing each other so much. Her tear-filled eyes as the sight of him, she needs him as much as he needs her...
I couldn't be more thankful that they still have each other - that their children still have them - and that I can still walk across that short lil' yard between my parent's house & theirs & know that most days, they'll be sitting there on that porch...that girl & that boy...I love them so much & am so proud of them...
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